


and flowers in your hair

by heterochromic not heterosexual (assassinactual)



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-29
Updated: 2020-05-29
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:14:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,006
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24439528
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/assassinactual/pseuds/heterochromic%20not%20heterosexual
Summary: This is when Adora realizes that she’s never felt more comfortable, relaxed,safethan she does here and now, with Catra beside her.
Relationships: Adora/Catra (She-Ra)
Comments: 14
Kudos: 283





	and flowers in your hair

**Author's Note:**

> [screams for six thousand years about s5]  
> this is basically just some post-finale gay feelings about sword lesbian and cat girl. title from after the storm, & bc there's a flower crown.

The night air is cool, and all but two of the smaller moons have set. But Adora’s heart is warm with the same carefree joy she’s been feeling since she took Catra’s hand after they won. When Adora held her and her voice cracked with laughter as she said _it’s over; he’s gone_.

The hours since then are a blur of emotional reunions and wild merriment. The Rebellion forces managed to set up a camp in a forest clearing as people from the nearest villages arrived to join the celebration. A raucous party kicked off soon after, and lasted long into the night. It’s mostly died down by now, but the big bonfire is still roaring, and there’s still a few people gathered around it. Local villagers, Rebellion and Horde soldiers, and even bandits from the Crimson Waste, all joined together simply as Etherians now.

Adora watches from the edge of the clearing, having slipped away from the center of attention while Glimmer departed for her own tent with Bow on her arm earlier. Not that she doesn’t appreciate everyone’s gratitude for her part in the victory, but she also appreciates being able to just bask in strange new feeling of _peace_.

There’s no watch set around the perimeter of the camp, no looming evil waiting just out of sight. No mind-controlled friends, ancient superweapons, or armies of machines from beyond the stars. She doesn’t know what tomorrow in this new world will bring, but for once that’s not something to fear.

All of it – the sparks rising up from the fire, the golden motes of magic in the air, the thousand thousand twinkling stars against the purple-blanket of the night sky – feels so peaceful and right. So full of wonder and magic.

Even the low tree branch she perches on is suffused with the warm glow of Etheria’s magic. The tree – like the rest of the forest around them, in what was a wasteland yesterday – is at once brand new and unfathomably ancient. Like it not only stands on its own, but is an extension of the planet itself. This, Adora thinks, is the true beating heart of Etheria: not the power her people chained, but the living magic that flows through and connects everything and everyone on the planet.

It’s this feeling that she wants to share, to carry back out into the stars she’s watching. This is why she proposed another trip right away, despite knowing Glimmer and Catra would both tease her about not knowing how to relax.

Though Adora does, privately, agree with what Glimmer said when they discussed it some more. That there’s no hurry now. For now, at least, she’s content to just sit and watch the stars.

Just as Adora thinks there’s only one way this could be more perfect, she hears the leaves rustle above her, and a familiar weight drops to the branch beside her. Catra shuffles closer, until Adora can feel her warmth pressed against her side.

“Hey Adora.” It’s not quite her usual playful, teasing tone. There’s something lighter, happier in it that she’s never heard, even when they were kids. Adora hums contentedly in response, leaning against Catra and dropping her head onto her shoulder. “Whatcha thinkin’ about?”

“Stars. Pretty,” Adora says, too content in the moment to even put together a sentence.

She doesn’t need to look to know Catra is smirking at her. She does anyway, taking a moment to just drink it in. And Catra, even with the unspoken teasing, waits for Adora to assemble some words into a coherent thought.

This is when Adora realizes that she’s never felt more comfortable, relaxed, _safe_ than she does here and now, with Catra beside her.

Taking the flower crown that Perfuma conjured off her head, Adora deftly fixes it on Catra before she can dodge. Catra makes a face, but no move to take it off. Adora giggles at this, and at the faint blush on Catra’s cheeks.

“It’s just…” Adora starts, as she settles back into Catra’s side. “People all over the world are celebrating like this. And all those stars are suns with their own worlds full of people that are celebrating now, too.”

Her voice cracks a little towards the end, and happy tears well up in her eyes. All the joy and love her heart has been so full of finally spills over and overwhelms her. She buries her face against Catra not to hide, but out of a sudden desperate need to hold her as close as possible.

“ _We did that_ ,” she whispers into Catra’s hair, the softest fur of her ears tickling Adora’s face.

Catra just wraps an arm around her and holds her even tighter.

Eventually Adora shifts, and they sit there in silence for while watching the stars together.

“You know,” Catra starts hesitantly, speaking so softly that if Adora wasn’t pressed right up against her she might not have heard, “when I was with Prime I hated it. Space, the stars. It was just dark and empty. But this…” She takes a deep breath and lets it out, relaxing even more into Adora. She looks up, her lips curving into a little smile. Adora tears her gaze away from Catra’s face for a moment to watch a pink and blue magical aurora ripple and dance across the twinkle stars. “Stars. Pretty.”

Adora laughs, and kisses Catra.

Despite Adora’s reluctance to move a softly purring Catra, and Catra’s insistence that as a cat, she can sleep anywhere, they do eventually start making their way to Adora’s tent. After Catra unnecessarily helps her down the short drop from their perch, Catra doesn’t let go of her, and they walk through the quiet camp hand in hand.

“I think you’re going soft hanging out with all these princesses,” Catra says, lightly teasing her. “Remember when we used to climb up the tower and just hang out there all night?”

Adora does remember, vividly.

She remembers the way the cold, hard metal would poke uncomfortably into her back and her legs. She remembers the exhilaration of having Catra so close beside her, and of holding her hand. She remembers how up there, looking over what passed for a scenic view in the Fright Zone, whispering with Catra felt a lot more intimate than it ever did in their bunk.

Adora scoffs. “I did that so I could be with you. Didn’t you ever notice I was always slower in training the next day?” This surprises Catra enough to stop her in tracks. Their clasped hands pull Adora up short too. She lets her momentum spin her around so she’s facing a blushing Catra. “Who’s the dummy now?”

“Still you,” Catra shoots back, poking Adora in the forehead with a single claw.

Adora takes hold of Catra’s free hand. She spins them around, just because she can. They turn in a circle two or three times, until one of them trips. They stumble around, laughing, until Adora backs up into a tree. Catra doesn’t even try to avoid crashing into her, and they end up pressed together.

Adora leans down, and touches her forehead to Catra’s so she can look right into her eyes. Adora blinks slowly, keeping her eyes shut for several seconds. When she opens them again, Catra looks a little surprised. Adora smiles.

“I love you,” she whispers, her lips almost brushing Catra’s.

Catra kisses her, soft and slow.

When they break apart, neither really pulls back much.

“Aren’t you going to get tired of saying that?” Catra asks. Her voice is light, but the way she’s not quite meeting Adora’s eyes anymore gives her away.

Adora gives Catra a quick kiss, just to get her attention. “Nope. It’s very important, so I’m gonna say it as much as possible.”

“Yeah?” Catra asks breathlessly, starting to smile again too.

“Yeah,” Adora confirms with a little nod.

“Well, maybe you should say it again,” Catra says playfully, smiling so the tips of her fangs poke out. “It’s been so long since the last time, I’m starting to forget.”

“I love you,” Adora says, not hesitating for a heartbeat.

Catra leans her forehead against Adora’s again. She speaks so softly that Adora feels the words as breath on her lips more than she hears them.

“I love you.”

When Adora wakes in the morning, the space beside her is empty and cool. Any momentary panic at the thought of Catra leaving once again is calmed when she sees Melog still sleeping peacefully at her feet.

Stretching and brushing her loose hair back with her fingers, she looks around the tent again. Adora notices that her jacket isn’t where she left it, just the tent door is pulled open.

Catra steps in, bringing two steaming mugs and the smell of coffee into the tent. With her focus on not spilling the drinks, Adora gets a moment to freely stare at Catra.

Catra, who is wearing Adora’s jacket.

It’s not something Adora ever thought of before. But now that she’s seen it, she can’t get enough of it. Of how cute Catra is in it – the jacket is just a little too big on her, and coordinates with but is distinct from her own outfit. But also how it is absolutely, unmistakeably clear _whose_ jacket Catra is wearing.

“Oh, hey,” Catra calls when she fully steps in to the tent and sees Adora awake.

“Hey,” Adora says, returning Catra’s greeting and her smile. Adora sits up fully, crossing her legs with the blanket still over them, so Catra can sit on the bed roll in front of her.

“This coffee is amazing,” Catra gushes as she hands Adora on of the mugs.

Adora smiles at her fondly. She takes a sip, and it is actually pretty good for war camp coffee. “You know, I think Horde coffee was just made with burnt ration bars.”

“Ha! Probably,” Catra agrees. Then she takes a moment, seemingly really looking at Adora for the first time since she came in. She reaches over, smoothing down a bit of Adora’s wild hair. “You, uh, look good like this.”

“Oh?”

“Mmm,” Catra hums in confirmation, hiding behind her mug.

“Well, you look good in my jacket.”

Catra jumps a little. “I, uh, was cold,” she says dismissively.

“Okay,” Adora says mildly.

Catra takes another long drink, but then murmurs something Adora doesn’t catch. She carefully sets her mug on the floor, takes Adora’s and sets it there too. She leaps into Adora’s lap, giving her a quick kiss then hugging her tightly. Adora is surprised, and a little stiff at first. But she then she relaxes, sinking into Catra’s embrace. After quite a long time – that still isn’t long enough – Catra lets go.

Standing up, Catra drops the jacket in Adora’s lap. “Warm now.” She smirks at the way Adora is staring dumbly at her, then turns towards the door. “Gotta go see Sparkles about something.”

“Wait, Catra!” Adora calls as Catra is about to leave.

Catra turns back to her, waiting, with her head cocked curiously to the side.

Adora fumbles with the jacket briefly before she gets what she wants, then takes a moment to disentangle herself from the blanket. She quickly crosses the small tent, and stands in front of Catra.

With more confidence than she feels, Adora affixes her golden wing pin to the front of Catra’s shirt. Checking that it’s positioned properly, she pats it and smooths down the shirt. “There.”

Catra stares down at the pin for a long moment, then her eyes meet Adora’s, searching, questioning. For a second Adora worries this is too much, too far. Then she notices the blush colouring Catra’s cheeks, and spreading to her neck and her ears.

“It’s fine,” Catra says breathlessly. She jerks a thumb over her shoulder. “I’m, uh…”

Adora nods, kissing her cheek. She waits, letting Catra take a few steps out the door. “Hey, Catra.”

“Yeah?” Catra asks, almost tripping over her own feet.

“I love you.”


End file.
